JRPGsare often defined by their expansive fictional worlds that feature extensive worldbuilding and lore. JRPGs, and fiction in general, have a lot of room to explore these ideas, creating new and unique worlds for players to experience.
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If you’re looking for something other than the traditional medieval fantasy setting, you’ve come to the right place. Below, we’ll take a look at some of the most interesting settings in JRPGs, from floating islands to apocalyptic cities.
9Xenoblade Chronicles Definitive Edition
Xenoblade Chronicleshas one of the most unique settings in any video game, let alone the genre of JRPGs. The game is set on two massive beings known as Titans, the organic Bionis and the mechanical Mechonis. Starting on the right leg of the organic Titan, the protagonists travel through and over the body parts of these Titans.
These Titans lie dormant, their bodies forming fields, lakes, and mountains that you will explore on your journey. The setting of Xenoblade Chronicles is deeply entrenched in the game’s lore, and provides for a wholly unique fantasy world to explore.
8Shin Megami Tensei Series
TheShin Megami Tenseiseries features a variety of different games, from numbered mainline entries to dozens of spin-off games. Across these games, the most common setting is a modern-day Tokyo, or in some cases, an apocalyptic version of Tokyo.
The combination of modern Tokyo landmarks like Akihabara’s arcades or Shibuya crossing and demon infestation is compelling and eerie, providing a great world for the typically dark stories of these games.
7Persona 4 Golden
A spin-off of the Shin Megami Tensei series,Persona 4trades a post-apocalyptic Tokyo for the cozy vibes of Inaba. This small town is based on places on the outskirts of Mount Fuji, and is intentionally small and unassuming.
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In Inaba, you will work with your group of friends to solve murder mysteries that are plaguing the sleepy town. Inaba provides just the right amount of school life and eerie mysteries to create the perfect environment for this game, and is as much a character as any of the investigation crew members.
6Chrono Trigger
Chrono Triggeris set in an Earth-like world, taking place between the prehistoric era all the way to the end of time. The protagonist, Chrono, and his friends eventually travel across time to different eras on the planet, showcasing different periods of life in the world.
Thanks to its unique time travel mechanics, Chrono Trigger manages to have multiple in-depth settings across the game. Prehistoric dinosaurs, medieval knights and castles, post-apocalypses, and sentient robots are just a few of the things you will experience on your time-traveling journey.
5Final Fantasy 12 And Final Fantasy Tactics
Final Fantasy 12andFinal Fantasy Tacticsare both set in the world of Ivalice. While the world of Ivalice has a fairly traditional fantasy aesthetic, the amount of lore and history present sets it apart from other similarly styled worlds.
Like many other Final Fantasy worlds, Ivalice is home to both traditional fantasy themes like swords and magic, but these coexist with machines and futuristic technology. The lore of Ivalice centers around the Zodiac Brave Story, which is further developed through FF12, Tactics, and their various spin-off games.
4Baten Kaitos
Baten Kaitos: Eternal Wings and the Lost Ocean, and its prequel, Baten Kaitos Origin, are two Gamecube games released in the early 2000s. These games are set in a world where, long ago, an evil god dried up the world’s oceans, leaving the surface of the planet uninhabitable.
This caused humanity to migrate to floating islands in the sky, where they eventually evolved to grow wings for easier travel in their new environment. When combined with the magic card system known as Magnus, which allows people to store the power of objects in cards, Baten Kaitos features one of the most interesting worlds out there.
3Parasite Eve
Parasite Eveand its two sequels, Parasite Eve 2 and The 3rd Birthday, are JRPGs set in New York City during the late 90s. The game’s world map is an actual map of Manhattan, allowing the player to visit key locations in the city.
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Although a New York setting may not seem like anything special, it’s not often that a JRPG finds its way to the big apple. Plus, Parasite Eve fleshes out the city with its magic and horror elements to create a truly unique setting.
2Nier: Automata
Nier: Automatais set in a post-apocalyptic world where the remnants of mankind have escaped to the moon, leaving Earth behind to decay into ruins after aliens known as machine lifeforms invade.
Taking control of the androids 2B and 9S, you will fight these machine lifeforms across various locales, including abandoned cities, creepy carnivals, and desert ruins. Nier: Automata manages to turn a fairly standard post-apocalyptic world into a fresh experience through its deep, interconnected lore and intriguing characters.
1Trails Series
The massiveTrails seriescan be divided into four distinct story arcs, all set in the same continent of Zemuria. These arcs include Trails in the Sky, Crossbell, Trails of Cold Steel, and Kuro no Kiseki. Across these different games, Zemuria is expanded upon and fleshed out.
The great thing about the setting of the Trails games is how diverse yet familiar and interconnected they are. References are made to different locations in each of the games, but the ever-present combination of magic and technology binds them together.
